Readers of an older generation will recall, often with fondness, watching the television sitcom “Bewitched” and reveling in simpler times. With a new documentary coming out about Elizabeth Montgomery, the lead actress who portrayed Samantha and who would have turned 90 this month, the former child actor on the series opened up about the show’s abrupt cancellation in 1972.
But you won’t hear the word “canceled” from her.
“We weren’t canceled,” Erin Murphy, who played the role of youngster Tabitha Stevens, recently told Fox News Digital. “We’d been picked up for two more seasons. So we went on our hiatus thinking we were going to come back a month or two [later], and we never did. … They sent a letter to our house [stating] that they decided not to continue. So, I went to Girl Scout camp.”
Of course, the young actress could have had no idea why the cameras suddenly stopped rolling. As it turns out, Montgomery had a few things to resolve in her life outside of the show.
For starters, she found herself in the position of being typecast, a fate not uncommon for actors and actresses who find success as one character but whose acting chops almost make them yearn to try something outside of a single recognition from fans.
There was also the fact that her marriage to the director of the show was coming apart, which would obviously make for some personal and professional challenges. Fox News wrote about that on-screen/off-screen challenge, saying:
Her marriage to William Asher, director of “Bewitched,” was also unraveling. She fell in love with the show’s other director, Richard Michaels, which contributed to the end of the series. Montgomery and Asher called it quits in 1973.
According to reports, Montgomery and Michaels lived together for two years after “Bewitched” ended before splitting up. Montgomery went on to marry longtime love Robert Foxworth in 1993, a union that lasted until her death.
Still, for the then-young Murphy, the show’s end was not all doom and gloom.
“I was happy to be able to do some of the after-school things, things I couldn’t do while I was on the show,” the actress explained. “There are some restrictions when you’re a kid actor. I couldn’t play sports … and ended up with a black eye. So, I was kind of happy in some ways that the show ended. I missed the day-to-day on the set because I loved it, and I loved the people that I worked with. And it was a fun experience. But I was also a kid. I was happy that I could do more things with my friends.”
“Bewitched” ran for 8 seasons, and instantly became a classic. In its first season, it was second only to the western-themed “Bonanza” in 1964. It would come to an end in 1972.
Fox said of the upcoming documentary:
The late star is now the subject of a new documentary premiering on Reelz, “Elizabeth Montgomery: A Bewitched Life.” It features new interviews with those who knew and worked with the actress over the years, including her son Bill Asher and actor Richard Dreyfuss, among others. Murphy, 58, narrates the special.
The documentary also explores Montgomery’s great loves and personal tragedies, including her strained relationship with father Robert Montgomery.
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